Nicolo Bulega was quickest during FIM Superbike World Championship Free Practice 2 Friday afternoon at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. Riding his Aruba.It Racing – Ducati Panigale V4R on spec Pirelli tires, the Italian covered the 2.76-mile (4.45 km) track in 1:29.101 to lead the field of 21 riders.
Alex Lowes was the best of the rest with a 1:29.354 on his Bimota by Kawasaki KB998 Rimini and his teammate Axel Bassani was third-fastest with a 1:29.468.
American Garrett Gerloff was 9th with a time of 1:29.699 on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
Danilo Petrucci was 11th on his ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team M1000RR with a lap time of 1:29.834.
WSBK fp2
More from a press release issued by Dorna:
The #11 cemented his place at the top of the standings in Free Practice 2, although it was his FP1 time that was the fastest of the day.
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) continued to top the times in the Australian Round for the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship. The #11 finished in P1 in both FP1 and FP2 at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit as he laid down a gauntlet to the rest of the field, finishing half-a-second clear of Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) in second and Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) in third.
BULEGA LEADS, BALDASSARRI IMPRESSES: A strong day one of 2026 for ‘Bulegas’
Like in FP1, Bulega started his session with a long run and put in some consistent lap times, culminating with a 1’29.131s to cement his place in P1. He improved in the second half of the session to a 1’29.101s, securing P1 in both sessions. During FP2, ‘Bulegas’ was being followed by new teammate Iker Lecuona as the #7 builds onto the Ducati Panigale V4R, with the Spanish rider finishing eighth overall, half-a-second down on his teammate. Sam Lowes had a disrupted FP2 after he fell in the first sector of the lap with around 20 minutes to go, although the #14 was still able to take second overall after setting a 1’29.382s in FP1. Alvaro Bautista (Barni Spark Racing Team) put in a late lap to claim fifth on the combined times as he set a 1’20.482s, exactly 0.002s ahead of Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven) in sixth as ‘Balda’ continues to shine on his return. Tarran Mackenzie (MGM Racing Performance) finished in 13th, directly ahead of rookie Alberto Surra (Motocorsa Racing), who was one of several crashers at the Turn 4 Miller Hairpin.
BIMOTA IN THE MIX: Second and fourth for Alex Lowes and Bassani
Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) was the first rider to improve their lap time compared to FP1 when he set a 1’29.354s, giving him a provisional P1 in FP2, and second overall, before Bulega demoted the #22. However, the Bimota rider did lose the last couple of minutes of FP2 after a Turn 4 lowside, although he was able to re-mount his bike. Teammate Axel Bassani confirmed Bimota’s pace as he finished a tenth behind Alex Lowes in FP2 with a 1’29.468s, and fourth overall.
IN THE TOP TEN AGAIN: Gerloff keeps the ZX-10RR in the top positions
American star Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) continued his strong visit to Australia as he secured a spot in the top ten. He finished ninth in the combined times after setting a 1’29.692s in FP1 and a 1’29.699s in FP2, with the #31 showing off his consistent pace throughout the day.
ADAPTATION ONGOING: Oliveira 10th, Petrucci 12th for BMW
Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was the lead BMW rider on Friday as he finished in tenth place. The Portuguese rider set a 1’29.746s as he finished inside the top ten, with his time set in FP1. Danilo Petrucci was two places behind after setting a 1’29.834s as the pair continue adapting to the M1000RR.
YAMAHA HOPING FOR GAINS: Vierge leads the blue charge in 11th
Yamaha have endured a difficult start to the season, with Xavi Vierge (Pata Maxus Yamaha) narrowly missing out on a top ten result. He finished 11th as the lead rider for the Japanese manufacturer after posting a 1’29.806s. Teammate Andrea Locatelli was struggling with the bumps over the course of the two-day Official Test, and ‘Loka’ finished Friday down in 15th place after posting a 1’30.060s. Stefano Manzi (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) was more than a tenth clear of teammate Remy Gardner in 18th and 19th respectively, with the latter heading into his home round still recovering from a broken arm and dislocated shoulder he sustained in training late last year. Bahattin Sofuoglu (Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) was 20th after he crashed at Turn 4 during FP2, with the #54 setting a 1’30.786s to beat teammate Mattia Rato; the Italian rounding out the WorldSBK field.
DIFFICULT DAY AT HONDA: Vickers 16th, Nagashima 17th
Honda have had a tricky start to the season, with new Honda HRC recruits Jake Dixon and Somkiat Chantra both missing from the grid due to respective injuries. There are still two CBR1000RR-R SP machines on the grid in the form of wildcard Ryan Vickers (Honda HRC) and Tetsuta Nagashima (Honda HRC), who finished in 16th and 17th respectively.
The top six from Friday’s WorldSBK action, full results here:
1. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’28.858s
2. Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) +0.496s
3. Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) +0.524s
4. Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) +0.610s
5. Alvaro Bautista (Barni Spark Racing Team) +0.624s
6. Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven) +0.626s
Tissot Superpole and the first race of 2026 await on Saturday! Catch all the action from 10:00 Local Time (UTC+11) using the WorldSBK VideoPass!
